Toyota to recall Lexus SUVs to fix floor mat

By: Scott Gowans

The Columbus Dispatch - June 29, 2012 02:08 PM

Federal safety regulators said today that they have asked the company to recall about 154,000
Lexus SUVs because their floor mats can trap the gas pedal and cause the vehicles to speed up
without warning. The agency is also said it may investigate whether Toyota told the agency about
problems quickly enough.

The move adds the 2010 model year Lexus RX 350 and RX 450 to a string of safety recalls that
date to 2009. Toyota has recalled more than 14 million vehicles globally to fix problems including
sticky gas pedals and floor mats. The recalls tarnished the company's reputation for reliability
and cut into sales.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it requested the SUV recall after
reviewing complaints from customers and information from Toyota.

The agency said gas pedals can become trapped by floor mats, causing the SUVs to accelerate
unexpectedly. The agency said people with the SUVs should remove the driver's side floor mat and
have their vehicles serviced quickly.

Toyota said owners will be notified by mail in early August, and dealers will fix the problem
for free.

Experts say if your car accelerates unexpectedly, you should step on the brake and shift into
neutral or shut off the engine.

Toyota paid the U S. government a record $48.8 million in fines for failing to promptly alert
U.S. regulators to safety problems over sticking accelerator pedals.